Sunday Drive

Saturday night, Jay and Maegen had a couple of us over for dinner. It was pouring rain outside. Hanging out around their dining room table with yummy food, wine and some Ben and Jerry's (this time with brownies and fresh strawberries) was exactly how I wanted to spend the evening! We caught up and later in the evening looked through some AMAZING pictures of Jay and Meg from years ago. Such good stuff...

I woke up at 8am on Sunday morning feeling well rested. After making some coffee, I spent a good 2+ hours getting my apartment in order. It was very satisfying work. After Saturday night's conversation with friends about how cleaning can be therapeutic, I wasn't feeling one bit guilty about taking the time to do it. I decided to reward myself with a Sunday drive. There are so many beautiful and interesting spots to see right around the corner. I grabbed my point & shoot and my Holga and called up Isaac to see if he wanted to ride along too. I picked him and his two bags of gear up : ) and we headed out.  

We saw the Rock of Ages quarry in Graniteville, VT-just 45 minutes south of Burlington. Their visitor's center is closed on Sundays but, we were still able to see quite a bit.

A little background from their site... 

“Rock of Ages is a 50-acre, 600 ft. deep active granite quarry. Founded in 1885 in Vermont, Rock of Ages owns and manages quarries in several states and countries. These quarries produce the highest combined volume of dimensional granite in North America.” 

Prickly things...

Pretty things...

Old covered bridges with many stories carved right into the wood...

Yep, this is summer in Vermont.

Here is one of three waterfalls I saw yesterday! How come I haven't seen this before?

A tasty A & W dinner but, man...those HORNETS!

Our Best Loss Ever!

Last night, the Toki-yo Go Go's (9-1) played in a championship game against Das Boot (9-1). Both teams had an exceptional season!  It all came down to one final game. Who would go home with this year's trophy?

Below, Seth and Jay are sporting their game faces and Miya is smirking while the previously recorded voice of Jed Baker, (singing our national anthem) blasted out of Jeff's boom box. The Boccé league even stopped to salute.

Both teams were a part of the traditional "coin toss" to see who would be in the field first. We lost. 

Then, we got things started. We all depend on Jay Curley's spreadsheet to help us stay organized on the field. Das Boot played strong and was able to score 7 runs in one of their innings! We were discouraged but, Miya kept us motivated when she said, "The BFP is going to have such an awesome story to write about when we make THIS AMAZING COME BACK!!" Yeah! Our spirits were high and the score in the final inning was 12 - 15. Victory was still within our grasp. Marin was next to kick with 2 outs. We just needed to get on base. He kicked an amazing kick. Das Boot was just too good. They brought their best game to the championships and caught everything, even Marin's final kick of the season.  
It was close but, in the end we lost by 3 points. Despite our loss, Miya spontaneously produced two bottles of champagne for the team and we toasted each other and a pretty damn good season. 

Nice one Go Go's!!

Grilled Cheese Sandwich with Tomato, Peppers and Basil

It's cool and rainy here today and that means comfort food. I decided to try a new twist on an old favorite-The Grilled Cheese. I'm not huge on super spicy things but, the serrano peppers were pretty tasty in this sandwich and added the perfect amount of zing!

8 (1 ounce) slices bread

4 slices Cheddar cheese

1 large tomato, sliced

2 serrano peppers, seeded and thinly sliced

2 teaspoons dried basil

salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons butter

Put it all together and grill on medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes on each side. This recipe makes 4 sandwiches.

For a good time...call Maine.

Friday night was the first late night I’ve had in a long time so, I was on slow the next morning when I received a text from my friend Steven that said, “ME (Maine)? lobster and stormy weather?” I couldn’t go to Maine this weekend, could I? I had plans to clean, get caught up, see friends and relax after a long work week. I slumbered for a bit longer before weighing my options. When do I have the opportunity to just take off for the night and head to Maine? So, I decided to accept!

Steven picked me up at around 1pm on Saturday. We took 89, to 93 and then picked up Route 1 just north of Boston. We finally crossed the bridge into Maine and almost immediately things began to look coastal. We weaved around through the small Maine towns like Kittery, Ogunquit, Moody and Kennebunkport driving slowly and at times completely stopped in summer traffic. We hadn’t decided where we were going to lay our heads on Saturday evening but, planned to travel on the cheap and be as close to the ocean as possible. We used our GPS and located a peninsula called Biddeford Pool just north of Kennebunkport. There, we found a B & B with vacancy. So we made our way in and after some fun conversation with the owner, he disclosed the (very reasonable) price and gave us the biggest room in the place! We handed him a Master Card and he said, “In all of my years I’ve never gotten one of these ‘Master Cards’ and today...I’ve gotten two!” We laughed. 

After settling in, we hopped back in the car to grab a bite. We ended up eating an a place called Buffleheads. Steven had Char-Broiled Filet Mignon with lobster and bearnaise sauce. Yes, Steven finally ate lobster...purposefully! I had Lobster Pie which had chunks of lobster in a creamy newburg sauce, topped with light puff pastry. Delicious. We headed home in the thick fog and decided to take a walk to the edge of the peninsula to see what we could see...in the dark. We ended up standing on some rocks that were fairly well lit by a street light. We could see the tide was coming in. The waves sounded amazingly powerful! We consulted the iphone for weather statistics. We knew things were a bit extreme as we were witnessing the remnants of Hurricane Bill. The humidity was at 98%. We were both stunned with this info. What does that even mean? Why wasn’t it raining? At one point I touched my hair and realized it was sopping wet. Steven had the same experience. Our clothes were wet too but, there was no rain. I guess that’s what high humidity feels like. We walked home through our eerily sleepy town, and went to sleep in our beds. 


The next morning we woke up and realized that we both had dreamt a very similar dream. My dream was SO realistic I thought it had actually taken place. I thought Steven woke me up in the early morning to let me know he was taking a walk. I was shocked when I woke up and saw him sounds asleep in his bed. How had I not heard him come in? He dreamt that I woke him up to take a drive down a road with ocean on both sides. The waves were crashing all over the road he was driving on and he couldn’t see well enough to navigate through them. He still had sleepy eyes. Strange. 
We checked out and grabbed breakfast at the grocery store next to our B & B. We enjoyed a spinach, bacon and cheddar omelet and wheat toast. SO, good! We sat in adirondack chairs and enjoyed a spectacular view complete with a flock of geese.   
On we went, back to the rocks we had visited the night before to see how they had changed. The waves were so impressive. The tide was scheduled to come in right around 2pm. So, we hopped in our car and headed to Old Orchard Beach. We didn’t plan to find the perfect place to see the waves at exactly the right time but, WE DID. We walked out to a restaurant at the very end of the pier and found a free table. Lucky us! There we sat as the 15-20 foot waves rolled right underneath our table touching the top of the pier and at times splashing up onto us. The people around us joked about us wanting to season our food with salt. What an experience. Here are a few pictures from the pier. 


The waves finally began to calm down and we decided to move on. With the receding waters came an increased level of anxiety about the rip current. No one was allowed in the water. The waves were huge and the undertoe was dangerously strong. So, people just watched in awe. 
We decided to head home via the interstate and made great time. In just a bit less than four hours I was back in cloudy Burlington. This unexpected trip gave me a whole new appreciation for Maine and all of it’s beauty...oh, and a killer sunburn. Hope to see you again soon Maine! XO   

Nice Lens, Baby!

Last night, I tried out a "Lensbaby" for the first time. What is a Lensbaby you ask? 

"Lensbaby camera lenses are a line of camera lenses produced by Lensbaby that combine a simple lens with a bellows or ball and socket mechanism for use in special-effect photography. The front standard can be manipulated off axis to move the sharpest area of focus (called the "sweet spot") to almost anywhere in the frame. Therefore the important part of the subject can be rendered fairly sharp with everything else out of focus, even if it is the same distance from the camera." -Wiki

   

In the midst of shooting, I was feeling really excited about the effect. The image quality is similar to what you might get when shooting with a Holga. Once I got home and started to review the images...I was a little disappointed. They were too blurry. Instead of select focus, I got NO focus. Oh well. The Lensbaby was a blast to play around with and Alex has assured me that I can borrow it again soon. The pictures are still kind of pretty and a little dreamy. Until next time...

...and then a couple of shots with a more traditional lens once the sun went down. Fun!

Sewing Project!

Last week I came across a new clothing website. Acrimony. They sell a beautiful collection of pieces created by a number of different designers. I fell in love with a few items on their site but, unfortunately, the price tag on most of them is hefty. Sigh. There was one piece in particular that I kept going back to. I’ve been looking for a sewing project to work on with the guidance of my highly skilled clothing designer friend, Alison Bannister. I sent a picture of the piece from Acrimony off to Alison to see if it was feasible for me to tackle. That’s the wrong question to ask Alison because in my eyes she can make just about anything. She responded with, “On a scale of 1-10 this is about a 7 in terms of difficulty but, I’m always up for a challenge!” 

Yesterday, I walked over to her place at 11:30am. We opened up the picture of the selected piece: a zip back bustier with slightly padded bust and some boning for shape. Alison had already pulled 3 patterns from her archives that she felt could start us down the right path. Together, we selected one and I started cutting. I have to be honest, I had NO idea what I had gotten myself  into with this piece. But, Alison knew exactly what we needed to do to get to the finish line. So, Max made us morning mojitos and we got started! 
First, I made a “dummy” piece. This involved cutting the pattern out of muslin (in our case some other fabric that we had a lot of) and sewing it together so you can do a fitting. Then, we drew right on the fabric to create a new pattern. Although I did most of the cutting, pinning, sewing and measuring myself, Alison was in the driver’s seat when it came to drawing up a new pattern, deciding where to cut, etc. Once the lines were drawn onto the dummy piece we took it off, cut it up, true’d it up so the new patterns lines were symmetrical and cut out a new pattern adding a 5/8th seam allowance on the perimeter of each piece. HOLY CRAP that was a lot of cutting! Eventually, we visited Alison’s “trunk of junk” to pick out some fabric. It’s pretty much a gold mine in there so, I think the trunk might need a new name. I found the perfect fabrics for this piece with Alison’s assistance, located the grain line on the fabric and started pinning/cutting. By the time all of that was finished...it was 4:30pm and I was exhausted in the best kind of way. I looked over at Alison who had taken a break from the dress she was making to write some things down. This way, we can remember “the plan” when we revisit the project. Next, I have to buy a yard of black cotton fabric for the liner (which will require all of the same shapes be cut out and sewn together again-the 3rd time, EEK) and a zipper. I am game. I love this process! No wonder the piece on line cost $286. It should for the amount of work it takes to make. 

Alison, thanks for all of your guidance! See you again soon. XO.  

JDK Staff Picnic at North Beach.

Today was JDK's annual summer picnic. This year, we met at North Beach at 9am to start the day. The weather was pretty epic and despite the forecast for temps in the 90's, it was surprisingly comfortable in the shade! 

This year's theme was, "Old Fashioned Fun" and "Armadillos." Yes, armadillos. They are a different kind of creature. Unique, like JDK. Today, they were the perfect mammal to represent where we fit within the industry. It was a super fun morning filled with all sorts of activities and lots inappropriate maniacal laughter. 

Here Nelia and I are prepping for our tug of war victory. Too bad we lost. 

We ate lots of yummy food...

...there were surprise water gun attacks, water balloons and potato sack races...

...some light drinking...

...armadillos...

...and of course, protection from the sun on this steamy summer day. 

Byron knows how to work it!

What a day it was!

A lovely weekend...despite the ketchup incident.

This past weekend, I was able to spend some time with my Mom and Patrick who were up visiting from their home in Massachusetts.

I headed down to Charlotte on Friday evening after a relaxing afternoon on Church Street with Steven, (I took the day off from work!).  Mom, Patrick and I decided to have dinner at Fire and Ice in Middlebury. We enjoyed the yummy food and the nostalgic atmosphere in the “Library Room.” Molly, I was thinking of you…

Saturday morning, my Mom and I woke up and hit a number of yard sales. We found a couple of small treasures but, the find of the day was this vintage Samsonite Saturn Bag for $1.00. It’s in perfect condition! 

When we got home, we decided to head down to the rocks to have an afternoon swim and a beer. We paddled ourselves around and had a good chat for an hour or so which was plenty of time for me to get a good burn on my face and arms. We've had a wet summer s0, I welcomed the warm rays, (I think I’m feeling the effects of my window-less office). After a little dinner alfresco, I headed back into Burlington in time for some dancing with Hannah and Alison at Lift.  

I woke up with a small headache on Sunday morning. Too much bubbly? Not enough sleep? Probably both. But, I decided to work things out with a solo mission to Montreal. Goal: To purchase a shelf that will occupy a corner space in my kitchen.  Thank goodness for the drive. IKEA on a Sunday is no place for a lady with a hangover.  My time there was brief but, long enough for an unsupervised child to bump into me and my hotdog knocking ketchup onto my new Adidas kicks. Probably serves me right for choosing to put ketchup on my dog instead of mustard in a place like Montreal. No further comment on that.

After getting the 90 lb IKEA shelf into my car (quite a task), I decided to head to The Atwater Market sans Craig this time. Poo. What a wonderful place to visit when you want to slow down and enjoy the sites, sounds and smells. 

Dahlia’s, $4 CAD for a large bouquet. But, you can’t take them with you over the border. Cry, cry, cry.

Bins and bins of onions, garlic, fruits and veggies…

A cheese tasting at Fromagerie du marché Atwater. I had the aged Gouda in the back right hand corner.

Then, I made a quick stop at French Connection to partake in their 75% off sale. Lucky me! Finally, I visited the old city before heading back to Burlington. I pulled up next to this lovely creature at a red light.

My tired body fell into bed last night after dinner and a movie for some much needed rest. It's warming up today. My AC is on for the second time this summer. Bring on the heat!

Julie and Julia

Maybe it's because I'm absolutely in love with the optimism that's threaded throughout this movie or the fact that I can totally identify with how hard it was for Julie to "kill" those lobsters but, I loved this movie! I think I smiled/laughed for most of two hours while watching Julia hoot and holler over life's simple pleasures...and perhaps cried a teensy bit too watching the ups and downs that the main characters faced in each of their lives. It's just life. But, what a wonderful gift it is when you discover a passion that you are able to share with others you love. Now, that's rich!

"Julia Child (Meryl Streep) and Julie Powell (Amy Adams) are featured in writer-director Nora Ephron's adaptation of two bestselling memoirs: Powell's Julie & Julia and My Life in France, by Julia Child with Alex Prud'homme. Based on two true stories, Julie & Julia intertwines the lives of two women who, though separated by time and space, are both at loose ends...until they discover that with the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible."  -Columbia Pictures